Destiny
by A. Amishi
Summary: An alternate continuation of the story following the events of The Tales of Ba Sing Se.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Avatar is the property of Nickelodeon. My only payment is the knowledge that you, the reader, have enjoyed this story.

Avatar: The Last Airbender – Destiny

Description: The inspiration for this story came to me after watch through, Tales of Ba Sing Se, and before seeing, Apa's Lost Days through the season finally. This takes a very different storyline than the series at the point of Tale of Ba Sing Se. This is first an action/adventure but it wouldn't be a story from me without some romance.

While the romance is primarily Kataang, there is some Zutara in it as well.

I hope you enjoy it.

Chapter 1: Making a Life

"I'm not so sure about this." Zuko's normally stiff posture was even more rigid than usual.

Jin wrapped herself around his arm and smiled up at her boyfriend. "Don't worry Li, my parents are going to love you." She glanced down the empty alleyway and quickly dragged the boy into it.

"Ugh!"

"And even if they don't, I will… always." The young lady wrapped her arms around the young prince and pressed her cheek against his chest.

"Me too Jin."

The young lady giggled. "Oh Li, you know how to make a declaration of love sound like a command."

"I do?" The young prince turned aside. "Sorry."

"That's what I love about you. You're so commanding, so strong. I feel safe when I'm with you."

Zuko slowly brought his arms up and held the girl close.

She enjoyed the warm embrace a bit longer before announcing, "We should get going. My parents are waiting."

"Right." Zuko took Jin's hand and lead her back down the street.

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(000)

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"So, Li… Jin tells me you work at a tea shop along with your uncle." Jin's father gestured to his tea cup and his wife quickly filled it for him.

"That's right Sir." The young prince gave a subtle bow.

"They make the best tea in all of Ba Sing Se." Jin added proudly.

"Your daughter is too kind."

"Not at all. I've heard the same from many of my business associates. They say they've never had tea so good." The man of the house took a sip of his tea. "Perhaps you can teach my wife how to make tea that good."

Jin's mother lowered her head in shame.

Zuko remained silent, choosing to taste his tea first before responding. "To be honest, it is my uncle who is the master tea maker. He is very passionate about his tea, but I must say, this tea suits my taste just fine."

The woman smiled and offered her daughter a sideways glance.

Jin smiled as well.

"What are your plans now that you are here in Ba Sing Se? You don't plan on being a waiter in a tea house forever, do you?" The man took another sip.

Zuko stole a glance at Jin and instantly picked up on her worried expression. "Well Sir, my uncle and I would like to open our own tea shop sometime soon, but it will take some time before we can save up enough money to be able to buy our own place."

Jin smiled again. After stealing a sideways glance at her father and seeing his approving nod, her smile grew even larger.

-

(000)

-

"Father was very impressed. I can tell. And mother thinks you were the perfect gentleman." Jin clung tightly to Zuko's arm.

"I just answered honestly and tried to be myself," he replied plainly.

"And you're perfect just the way you are," his girlfriend added. "You know, Father is always looking for a good investment. Maybe, if I ask him, he would be willing to lend you the money so you can start your own shop?" Jin could hardly contain her enthusiasm.

"No, don't!"

She shrank away slightly.

"Sorry. I just mean… I don't like being indebted to anyone."

"I see." She looked away sadly.

"Besides, I'd have to discuss it with my uncle first. He's a proud man, it might take some convincing."

Jin smiled up at her boyfriend. "I'm sure you can convince him." They continued down the courtyard to the fountain. "Oh look! The lamps are lit this time. Isn't it beautiful?"

Zuko nodded. Turning towards his girlfriend, he said softly. "Jin…."

She smiled up at him. "Yes Li?"

"I… I…"

She held his hands in hers. "What is it Li? You know you can tell me anything."

"I…" He looked away for a moment then turned back and gazed into her trusting eyes. Without any further hesitation, he leaned in and kissed her.

-

(000)

-

Zuko opened the door to the small apartment he and his uncle shared.

"Back already?" The portly old man asked, looking up from his book.

"It's nearly midnight," the young prince replied.

"Oh, is it really? This book is so good, I completely lost track of time." Iroh stood up and stretched. "Aaaah! Care for some tea?"

"THAT… would be nice, but sit, I'll get it Uncle." Zuko walked over to the counter and grabbed the pot then filled it with water.

"Huh?" Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, Iroh sat back down, placed his marker in the book before closing it and asked. "So, how was dinner with Jin's parents?"

The young man waited till he got the water hot, then brought the pot and the tea to the table. Sitting across from his uncle, he prepared the tea. "Her father is a bit stuffy, but I guess its normal for a father to be protective of his daughter."

"Protective?"

"He kept asking questions, sizing me up to see if I was good enough for his daughter."

"I see, and what about Jin's mother?"

"A pleasant woman. A bit shy, which is understandable with how overbearing her father can be." Zuko looked off pensively.

"Mmm, good tea. You're learning. It seems all our time at the tea house hasn't been wasted." The former general took another long sip.

"Uncle, what do you think about opening our own tea shop?"

"Huh? Are you serious?"

"I wouldn't be asking if I weren't."

"But I thought you weren't interesting in settling down and making a life here in Ba Sing Se?" Iroh stroked his beard and gave his nephew and inquisative eye.

"Things change… I've changed." Zuko tilted his head and stared out the window.

Iroh smirked knowingly. "Could part of the change be because of a certain young lady?"

Zuko looked down into his tea. "Is it wrong for me to want something so pedestrian as a home and a family?"

The elderly man reached out and placed a hand over his nephew's. "Whether a king or a peasant; we all want the same thing, a place to call our own and a family to share it with."

"I never thought I could be happy in a place like this. I never imagined wanting anything outside of my homeland. But Jin is so…. so…"

"Yes, she is." The old man smiled. "Will you look at the time. We should get to bed. We have work in the morning, and if we're going to be saving up to buy our own tea shop, we'll need to put in as many hours as we can."

"Goodnight Uncle."

"Goodnight Prince Zuko."

"No, just Zuko from now on."

"Goodnight, my nephew." The old man smiled and went to his room.

-

-

-

(To Be Continued)


	2. Chapter 2: Dusty Work

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.

Title: Avatar: The Last Airbender – Destiny

Chapter 2: Dusty Work

-

-

Toph and Aang stood about a hundred yards beyond the outer wall of Ba Sing Se. Apa lay a safe distance away, happily watching his friend and companion train while Katara rubbed behind his ear and watched intently as well.

"Alright, now search the ground deep beneath your feet and find a bolder that's at least a hundred feet long, thirty feet wide, and twenty-five feet high." The young earthbending master ordered.

"Huh?" The avatar lowered his hands. "How am I supposed to do that?"

"Feel the earth beneath your feet. Feel every rock, every pebble, every bolder. Search each one and determine its size." Toph lowered her head slightly and slid her foot lightly over the ground. "There must be two… no, more like three dozen rocks that size all around us."

"How deep are you feeling?" Aang dug his feet more firmly into the ground. "Wait! There, I think I found one." He raised his hands in front of himself and drew the rock up.

The ground shook slightly and a moment later a rock about eight feet in diameter shot out from the ground.

"Ouch!" The airbender rubbed his head where a small rock struck him.

"I said a bolder, not a pebble!" The earthbender raised a stone half the size of the one Aang had found and sent it smashing into the larger rock, shattering both into millions of tiny pieces. "Now try again!"

Aang's shoulders slumped low and his head hung even lower.

"Go on! Try again Aang! You can do it!" Katara waved, offering the boy a big warm encouraging smile.

Just gazing upon the young waterbender was enough to raise his spirits, and he straightened up and gave it another go. This time the earth rumbled and a mound began to form about 20 feet in front of him.

"Rrrrr" Aang strained with every ounce of strength in him, causing the mound to grow steadily larger until finally, the ground erupted and a huge bolder almost twice the size of the one his master instructed him to find came shooting out of the ground. It flew thirty feet into the air and came crashing back to the earth.

Toph levitated a clump of dirt and launched it at her pupil's head.

"Ouch! What was that for?" Aang whined while rubbing the back of his head.

"Did I tell you to set it down?" She crossed her arms over her chest.

"Oh, sorry." The avatar levitated the bolder back up into the air.

"Okay, now I want you to carve out the image of Apa from the rock while keeping the boulder at least twelve feet in the air at all times."

"What? But that's impossible!" Aang dropped the boulder, pleading his case to his earthbending master. "Ouch!" He rubbed his forehead where she struck him with another clump of earth.

"It's not impossible. Now, do it!" Toph commanded.

"But what is carving a statue of Apa going to teach me? Arts and crafts?" The bald monk whined. "Ouch? Stop that!"

"I'll stop it when you learn to listen to instructions without question." Toph stomped her foot and sent the boy flying ten feet into the air. "As for the purpose of this exercise. It will teach you something you're sorely lacking, self-control. You can shoot a boulder and even block one now, but your control is pitiful. This will teach you control. Now lift that bolder and start carving; and not some cheap, cheesy carving either. I want it looking just like Apa, from each strand of big fluffy hair to the calloused pads under his feet."

Grudgingly, Aang lifted the bolder again.

"And just in case you get the idea that you can set the rock down just because you get a little tired during this exercise." Toph turned and shouted, "Hey Katara, can you come here for a minute?"

"Sure!" The young waterbender hopped off the giant bison and trotted over. "How can I help?" She asked enthusiastically.

"Just stand still." Toph made a subtle gesture towards the other girl's feet and the ground leapt up and encircled them.

"Aah!" Katara cried out, and before she knew it she was moving across the ground, under the massive bolder.

"What are you doing?" Aang shouted.

"Just giving you some motivation not to drop the rock."

"That's not fair. If you want to put someone's life in danger, why not your own?"

Toph thought about it for a moment then replied. "Okay, if that's what it takes to make you learn control." She walked under the bolder and sat down next to Katara. "Just understand, I won't use my bending abilities at all except to keep you from moving the rock anywhere other than over us. If you drop it, you will kill us, guaranteed. So work fast, concentrate on keeping the rock up and carve out an accurate likeness of Apa, and remember breathing in dust can be just as deadly as having a twenty ton bolder fall on you, so keep the dust to a minimum."

They fell silent for a few moments.

"Well, we're not getting any younger down here and you're not getting any stronger, holding up this rock." Toph said sarcastically.

"Right." He nodded then turned towards his bison. "Apa, here boy."

The great flying beast walked over and licked Aang's face.

"Easy boy. I need you to stand over there." The avatar gestured with his head. "That's a good boy." He studied the creature closely then began slicing off huge chunks of rock.

"Finally, he started." Toph lifted three small stones and juggled them without actually touching them.

"Umm, do you mind?" Katara struggled to free her feet from the ground.

"Promise not to run?"

"Would it do me any good?" The waterbender replied.

"No." Toph shifted the stones over one hand and patted the ground with the other, which caused the earth around Katara's feet to fall loose.

The waterbender sighed then sat down next to the younger girl. "You were just joking about letting this rock crush us, right?" She released a nervous laugh.

"No. The only way he's going to learn is to see this task through. Of course, if Twinkle-toes out there had any sense, he'd start on the lower half and carve out Apa's legs first, so even if he did drop it, it wouldn't crush us, but from the sound of things it seems he's starting on the top." Toph sent one of the stones skipping across the ground till it bounced off of Aang's foot. "What do you think you are doing?"

"I'm walking around the bolder to carve it out." He answered.

"And making yourself more tired in the process," the earthbending master replied. "Rest your body as much as you can and use bending to move the rock and Apa. And remember control the amount of dust you make."

"Right." Aang wiped his brow and continued carving.

-

(000)

-

Sokka sat on the front steps of the house that served as their home for the past month, flinging his boomerang and catching it on the return. "What's taking them so long Momo?" He flung his boomerang again.

"Nice to see you've kept yourself busy in our absence," his sister teased.

"Hey! You guys are back!" The older teen stood up abruptly and got hit in the stomach with the boomerang for his effort. "Ugh!" He fell to the ground clutching his midsection.

Katara ran up and knelt beside him. "Are you okay Sokka?"

"Yeah…" He sat up slowly, still clutching his stomach. "No problem." Looking over at his sister, he recoiled in shock. "Aaah! What happened to you? And Toph?" Who came to a stop next to Katara.

"Seems my student still has a few things to learn about control." Toph placed one hand on top of Katara's head and her other hand just below her own chest, and in one swift motion swept a small mountain of dust off of them and onto Aang. "Isn't that right, Twinkle-toes?"

Shaking his head to get the dust off his face, he lowered his head. "Yes, Master Toph."

"As much as I feel at home with earth, even I feel the need for a bath right now." The pre-teen walked into the house.

"I'll join you." Katara stood up and followed the other girl inside.

With the front door closed, Aang released a whirlwind of air and blew the dust away. "At least the sculpture came out nice. Didn't it Apa?" He smiled.

The giant bison roared his approval.

"Sculpture?" Sokka stood up and walked over to his friend.

"Yeah, Toph had me-" but before he could explain, the older teen, pulled out a letter and handed it to the avatar.

"Whatever. This came for you while you were out."

Aang took the letter and opened it. "I wonder what it could be?" He read it over carefully.

"So, what does it say?" Sokka looked over his shoulder.

"Long Fang wants me to make a public appearance in the Lower Ring."

"That rat. He just wants to use you to placate the masses into believe there's nothing to worry about because you're here." The young water tribe warrior scowled.

"I guess, but I promised to do whatever he asked in return for Apa. I have to keep my word." Aang folded the letter and slid it up his sleeve. "Guess I'll go wash up too." He walked inside the house.

Sokka stared after the boy till the door closed behind him then turned towards the giant bison. "So what's this about a sculpture?"

The beast let out a huge roar.

-

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(To be Continued)

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AN: Hope you enjoyed the second chapter. Trying to think of what would be the best way for Toph to teach Aang control, I came up with making a sculpture while suspending the rock he was sculpting in the air. It seemed like a reasonable way to do it. Obviously, Aang wasn't entirely successful because the girls ended up covered in dust despite Toph's repeated warnings.

Chapter three will be posted sometime after the 16th of January. That's when my wife and I return from our Carribean cruise to celebrate our 25th anniversary. So till then.

A. Amishi


	3. Chapter 3: A Hopeful Future

Disclaimer: See chapter 1

Title:: Avatar: The Last Airbender – Destiny

Chapter 3: A Hopeful Future

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-

"This place is fantastic!" Iroh exclaimed as he toured the empty shop. "And the location is perfect So much nicer than the Lower Ring. We should be able to do double the business of our old shop, easily." He checked the sturdiness of each table and ran his hand over the front counter.

"That wasn't our shop, we just worked there, but this place." Zuko circled around slowly, taking it all in. "This is ours, our own tea shop Uncle."

Suddenly, there was a knock and the front door creaked open slightly. "Excuse me, might I get a cup of tea please?" A familiar smiling face asked.

"Come in Jin, come in!" Iroh gestured enthusiastically. "It is always a pleasure to see you."

The girl giggled and bowed. "Thank you Uncle Mushi." Stepping in she looked about the shop. "So how do you like your new tea shop?"

"It's wonderful. Please, thank your father for me once again and let him know there will always be an available table and a free pot of tea waiting for him here." Iroh bowed.

Jin giggled again. "I'll be sure to tell him."

Glancing over at his nephew then back at the young woman, Iroh cleared his throat and winked at the young prince. "Well, I'm going to check the back room." And he made himself scares.

Zuko cracked a faint smile. "Sorry Jin, our supplies haven't been delivered yet; but you're always welcomed."

The young woman smiled warmly. "I was just joking about the tea."

"Oh…" Zuko scratched the back of his head and gave a weak laugh. "Right."

The girl laughed all the more and hugged the boy. "Oh Li. You're always so serious."

"Am I? Sorry?" Zuko hesitated a moment before wrapping his arms around her.

Looking up, she gifted him with a broad smile. "Don't be. I love how serious you look all the time. It makes you look so… cute."

"Cute!" The firebender scowled.

"Mmm," Jin nodded. "In a very handsome and manly way." She leaned in and kissed the young prince.

Zuko's posture softened slightly as he pulled her closer.

"Don't mind me." Iroh walked past the young couple on his way to the door.

Despite the elderly man's remark, the couple separated. "Uncle, where are you going?"

"I'm just going to check on our supplies. Sometimes it helps to provide a little motivation." He winked. "If you know what I mean." Iroh smiled. "Keep an eye on the shop, and if you do leave, for a romantic stroll or something-"

"Uncle!"

"…be sure to lock up." He smiled at his nephew. "It was good seeing you again Jin." He nodded towards the girl.

"It is always a pleasure Uncle Mushi." Jin put her hands together and bowed respectfully.

"I'm sorry about that. He says the most inappropriate things sometimes." The prince continued scowling at the closed door.

"That's okay." Jin took Zuko's hand. "It wasn't a bad idea, you know."

"What?"

"It's a really nice day out. Why don't we go for a walk. It would be… romantic." She smiled.

Zuko blushed but quickly recovered. "Umm, sure. Why not?" He dug in his pocket and pulled out the spare key to the shop, then gestured towards the door.

-

-

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"So when are you supposed to make this public appearance?" Katara asked while drying and combing her hair.

"Not till next week." Aang answered. "I don't see why I just can't go there now. It's not like I haven't been to the Lower Ring already."

"But this way Long Feng can control things. Remember, the last thing he wants is you talking about the war." Toph replied while twirling her marble-handled brush in her hand.

"I guess. Still, it seems kinda silly to make such a big deal about something like this." Aang pulled on a fresh shirt. "Besides, I don't know if we should even stay here much longer."

"What do you mean?" Katara asked, taking Toph's brush from her and working it through the younger girl's hair.

"Well, I've all but mastered waterbending…" The avatar hesitated to see if his waterbending teacher agreed or not.

Katara stared off for a moment considering her student's comment before replying. "Well, I guess… for the most part any way."

"And I'm well on my way to mastering earthbending…"

Toph laughed. "Oh, you were serious? Sorry."

"Anyway, I need to find a firebending master to teach me firebending." Aang concluded.

"Hey, wait a minute. Remember what happened the last time you tried firebending." Sokka, who had been snacking on berries with Momo the whole time, jumped up and glared at his young friend.

Aang lowered his head in shame. "I know, and I swore never to firebend again, but if I'm going to defeat the Fire Lord, I have to at least try."

Toph noticed Katara had stopped brushing her hair even though it did not feel finished when Aang mentioned firebending. "What happened the last time Aang tried firebending?"

Sokka waited for the two people involved in the incident to respond but when neither one did, he answered the question. "Aang burned Katara."

"What?" Toph shouted in surprise.

"He burned her hands." The teenage boy elaborated.

The young earthbender turned and grabbed Katara's hands. "I don't feel any scar tissue."

"I was able to heal my burns. I-It was the first time I ever used my healing powers." The waterbender explained.

"So what's the problem?" Toph turned back to allow Katara to finish brushing her hair.

Sokka scowled. "The problem is, Aang is reckless. Last time he burnt Katara's hands. Thank goodness she was able to heal herself, but who knows what kind of damage he could cause next time?"

"But I've learned so much since then." Aang replied in his defense. "Master Jeong Jeong said I needed to master waterbending and earthbending before I even tried firebending, and I have." He glanced over at his two teachers and saw their skeptical expressions. "Well, almost anyway."

"I-I guess, but where are you going to find a firebending master? Jeong Jeong disappeared so it's not like you can just wander back into the forest and hope to find him again." Sokka rationalized.

"Sokka's right," replied Katara. "We should probably stay in Ba Sing Se until you've finished mastering water and earth. This way you don't have to worry about the Fire Nation or those crazy girls."

"I guess…" Aang hung his head.

"Cheer up Twinkletoes. You've come a long way in a short time. In fact, I'll start teaching you some advanced earthbending moves starting tomorrow."

Aang smiled slightly. "Thanks Toph."

"We'll go to Lake Laogai later today to work on your waterbending, okay?" Katara added. "I've got some things I've been wanting to try so we might as well try them together."

Aang's smile grew. "Okay Katara."

"Good, now that that's settled, what are we doing for dinner?" Sokka said in all seriousness.

"Leave it to Sokka to think of his stomach first." His sister replied.

"Hey! Dinner's just three hours away." He shot back.

"Spoken like a true warrior." Toph teased.

"Hey!" Sokka protested while the others laughed.

-

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Zuko and Jin walked through the streets of the Upper Ring in comfortable silence. Reaching the central park area, they sat in the shade of a cherry blossom tree and watched as people walked two and fro.

"You know, we're the ones who should be thanking you and your uncle really." Jin said shyly.

"What do you mean?"

"My father has worked hard building a number of businesses over the years but it was never enough to get us out of the Lower Ring. Not until you and your uncle that is. With your tea shop, he was finally able to get the financial backing he needed to move several of his other businesses up to the Middle and Upper Rings as well, along with us." She smiled.

"So you've moved to the Upper Ring?" Zuko leaned a bit closer.

"Mmm hmm." She nodded. "And it wouldn't have been possible without you and your uncle."

"I see." Zuko looked towards the ground for a moment. "Well, I'm glad we were able to help." He looked into her eyes for a moment before turning away.

"Is something wrong? Y-you're not angry, are you Li?" Jin leaned forward trying to get a good look at his face.

"No!" He turned quickly, brushing her cheek with his nose. "Oh, sorry." He leaned back.

The girl laughed and sat up straight. "It's all right."

"I'm glad your father was able to move you out of the Lower Ring. I feel better knowing you'll be living here now, where it's safer." Seeing her warm, caring smile eased the young prince's heart. "I care about you Jin… a lot." He turned away for a moment. "And I want you to know all about me… about my past… and who I was before… before I came here."

The earthkingdom girl placed her hand over his. "It's okay Li. It doesn't matter to me who you were before. All that matters to me is who you are now." She reached up and gently caressed his cheek. "It's the person you are now that is the one I've fallen in love with.

Zuko leaned in and kissed the girl ever so softly. As she leaned in to return the kiss, her stomach grumbled. Backing away, Jin placed her hand over her mouth and laughed. "Sorry."

Zuko gifted her with a rare smile. "That's all right." He stood up and offered her a hand. "Come on, I'll buy you dinner."

She accepted his hand and sprang to her feet, surprising him with a hug. "Okay." She smiled up at Zuko and kissed his cheek. "And afterwards we can take a stroll along Lake Laogai. It's especially beautiful in the early evening."

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(To Be Continued)

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AN: Well, this is my last update till I get back from vacation in the Bahamas. I'm taking my wife down there for our 25th Anniversary. I hope she enjoys it. 

So chapter 4 should be up either late next week or the week after for sure.

A. Amishi


	4. Chapter 4: Waterbending Master

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.

Avatar: The Last Airbender – Destiny

Chapter 4: Prove you are a waterbending master

"Wow! It's so big." Aang stared slack jawed out over the lake.

"Mmm, big and beautiful." Katara nodded.

Aang smiled over at his waterbending master for a moment. "Oh." He started pulling his shirt off.

"You don't need to do that," the waterbender informed him.

"Huh?" He pulled his shirt back down to see Katara standing on a sheet of ice about 10 feet into the lake.

"Come on, we'll train in the middle of the lake." She turned and started gliding over the surface of the water.

"Middle of the lake?" Aang hesitated a moment before forming a sheet of ice as well and stepping out onto it. "Aaah!" He almost fell over but sent a blast of air down towards the water to regain his balance. After taking a few deep breaths, he began gliding over the water towards his teacher.

Katara came to a stop and built up a small island of ice in the middle of the lake. A minute later, Aang pulled up to the island and walked up to her. "Why are we training all the way out here?" he questioned while turning all the way around seeing just how big the lake really was.

"This way we can make sure we don't hurt anyone by accident," she answered.

"Hurt?"

"This is a no-holds-bar, all out battle. You and me, one on one." Katara put up her guard.

Aang just stared at her dumbfounded. "Y-your kidding, right?" He gave a weak laugh.

The blue-eyed waterbender shook her head returning his gaze with a cold stare. "If you believe you've mastered waterbending, then you need to defeat me in battle. Waterbending against waterbending. No airbending, no earthbending. If you can beat me, then there's nothing else for me to teach you, but if I win… well, no more talk about finding a firebending teacher, at least not for awhile anyway."

Aang stumbled back and put his hands up in front of himself. "I don't want to fight you Katara. Not really fight."

"You don't understand Aang. You have to prove to me you are a waterbending master; right here, right now." She launched a wave of ice at him that shot up into a giant arrowhead aimed right at Aang's heart.

"Aah!" Aang leaned way back, used his airbending to keep from touching the ground as the arrow sailed over him.

"No cheating!" Katara yelled angrily. "Only use waterbending!" She sent a hail of ice spikes at him.

This time Aang raised a wall of ice to block the attack then sent the wall flying towards his teacher who disbursed it several feet in front of her.

"Do you respect me?" Katara slammed her fists against her hips.

"Of course Katara." Aang reached his hands out to her.

"Then fight me!" She lunged forward causing the ice beneath the avatar's feet to melt and sending him into the water, then she froze it over him.

As the seconds turned into minutes, the waterbender's eyes darted over the water looking for any hint of movement. "Aang…. Aang…. Aang!"

Suddenly, a whirlpool began to form about twenty feet from the ice island and the avatar came out riding the swirling waters. It danced thirty feet in the air before bringing him down onto the ice where he landed on his feet and sent the whirlpool sailing at his instructor. She let out a scream as it hit her straight on and carried her out over the lake.

"Ahah!" Aang laughed in victory. "Huh?" But his expression changed abruptly when the whirlpool turned and headed back towards him. "No way!" he shouted, seeing the young waterbender riding the spiraling waters and just as it reached the island, it turned into a swirling pillar of ice. Whipping the tail of the pillar about, Katara wrapped it around her opponent and squeezed. Aang let out a scream as the icy pain blinded him for a moment.

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Zuko and Jin walked hand in hand along the shore of Lake Laogai.

"My mother is so excited about our new place. She has been busy buying all sorts of stuff to fill in all the new space. She even bought a new bedroom set for the guest room." Jin went on.

"That's nice." Zuko replied, his eyes staring aimlessly at the ground before him.

Jin glanced over to see the blank expression on her boyfriend's face. "She's thinking of buying a platypus-bear as a pet and I told her it can sleep in my bed."

"That's nice." Zuko repeated.

"Li…"

"What?" The young prince looked over at his girlfriend.

"You haven't heard a word I've said, have you?" She gave him a stern look.

"Huh…" Zuko's eyes went wide. "S-sorry." He looked away and scratched the back of his head.

Jin laughed. "It's okay. I was just teasing." Catching a glimpse of movement over Zuko's shoulder, she asked, "What's that?"

The firebender turned and looked out over the lake. "It looks like a battle."

"In the middle of the lake?" she replied while keeping her eyes on the disturbance.

"It must be waterbenders." Zuko reasoned. "Who ever it is, they're really going at it."

"Oh my gosh! Do you think it could be the avatar?" Jin clutched Zuko's arm in excitement.

"The avatar!" Zuko's eyes narrowed and his whole body tensed up.

"Mmm, I'd heard rumors that he's been living in Ba Sing Se but nothing official until a couple days ago." She smiled happily.

"Official?" The prince shot her a questioning stare.

"Mmm, he's supposed to make his first public appearance in the Lower Ring next week." It's too bad we're not living down there anymore, though I suppose we could go there just to see him." She smiled up at her boyfriend, but was taken aback by his stern glare. "W-what's wrong Li?"

Zuko clenched his teeth and balled his hand into a tight fist. "Nothing," he whispered. "Nothing at all." Turning to look out over the lake again, he thought aloud. "Where do you suppose he's been staying this whole time?"

"I don't know…" Jin whispered softly, then suddenly got very excited. "But I bet my father can find out. He has some contacts in the government. I'm sure he can find out if I ask."

"No, that's okay. I was just thinking out loud." Zuko continued to watch intently.

Jin followed her boyfriend's example. "What do you think they're doing out there?"

"Training. The avatar has to master all four elements. That's his destiny," the Fire Nation prince answered. "From the looks of it, he still has a lot to learn." Zuko flinched slightly at seeing Aang slammed violently into the water.

"Looks more like a fight than training." Jin clasped her boyfriend's arm more tightly. "Come on Li. Let's go." She gave him a tug.

He looked down at her with a wrinkled brow. "What's wrong?"

"N-nothing… I just don't like watching people fight. It scares me." She turned away to conceal the redness in her face.

Zuko cracked a faint smile. "Okay," then slipped his hand into hers. "It's getting late. I'll take you home."

"Thanks Li." Jin rested her head upon his arm.

Zuko leaned down and kissed her on the top of her head, then turned his head further back to steal one last glimpse over the lake.

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"Aang… Aang… Aang…" Katara gently caressed the avatar's cheek.

Slowly, the boy's eyes began to open. "Wha-what happened?"

"Well…" The waterbender blushed. "I guess you still have more waterbending to learn." She gestured her hand over him and drew the water from his clothes, and sent it back in the lake. "Can you stand?"

Aang took a deep breath. "I think so." He tried to sit up but only made it half way before falling back onto her lap.

"Maybe you should rest awhile longer," she suggested.

"No, that's okay, but I could use a little help." He gave her a half smile.

Katara smiled down at him. "Just lie still. I'll get us to shore first, okay?"

Aang gave a subtle nod then tilted his head towards the shore.

She smiled down at him once more before melting away most of the island and sending them gliding towards shore.

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"Wow Katara, I'm impressed." The young earthbender rang out a cloth over a bowl of clear, cool water and handed it to the waterbender.

"About what?" The blue-eyed teen took the cloth and placed it on the avatar's forehead.

"I didn't think you had it in you to go all out on your boyfriend." Toph grinned and Aang blushed slightly while trying to hide a faint smile.

"He's not my boyfriend!" Katara shouted causing Aang's smile to vanish. "Don't tease him like that."

"Yeah, whatever." The blind girl turned her attention to her pupil. "Guess you're still a ways away from mastering waterbending." She slugged him in the arm and he grimaced in pain.

"Easy Toph. Aang's got bruises everywhere." Katara bent some water into her hand from the bowl and gently worked it over the bruises.

Standing up, the younger girl stretched her arms high over her head. "Well, be sure to get better fast Twinkletoes. Tomorrow we find out how far you are from mastering earthbending."

"Great." Aang smirked. "I can't wait." His eyes rolled back and he pretended to pass out.

"Don't worry Aang. I'll have you fixed up in no time." Katara assured him.

"Just in time to get his butt kicked by Toph tomorrow." Sokka laughed.

His sister sent a bead of water sailing at his forehead.

"Ouh!" The oldest member of the group fell backwards and hit the back of his head against the wall then collapsed to the ground, clutching both the front and back of his head. "Why'd you do that?"

"Because you deserved it," Katara snapped.

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Zuko walked in the empty teashop and took a quick look around, then called out, "Uncle!"

A moment later a reply came from the back of the shop. "Over here!"

Zuko wasted no time rushing to the rear of the store.

"You've come just in time." The older man smiled at the sight of his nephew. "I made the mistake of mixing the boxes of Oolong and Jasmine." He held up two small boxes. While the two herbs have their own unique scents, after smelling them for over an hour, I could use another nose to help." He sneezed into his sleeve.

"Uncle, the avatar is here." The young prince said sternly.

"Where? In the shop?" Iroh peeked around the corner towards the front of the teashop.

"No! Not here." Zuko pointed down. "Here, in Ba Sing Se."

"Hmm…" The elderly man stroked his beard. "Do you suppose he might become a regular customer? Imagine the advertising. **_'Favorite tea of the Avatar'_**, what flavor do you suppose he prefers?"

"Who cares what tea he likes?! Uncle, this is my big chance!" Zuko exclaimed.

"Big chance for what?" Iroh raised a questioning eyebrow.

"For what? To capture the avatar, of course. To regain my honor and my throne."

"And at what cost?"

"What do you mean Uncle?" A confused Zuko asked.

"We are in the heart of the Earth Kingdom. How do you expect to get the avatar all the way to the Fire Nation without being captured?" Iroh stared his nephew squarely in the eye. "And what about Jin? Are you ready to give up on her?"

Zuko turned away. "Jin."

"We've made a life for ourselves here Zuko. We have a new apartment and our own business. And you have a girl who loves you and is willing to do most anything for you." Iroh placed a hand upon his nephew's shoulder. "You have a chance at happiness here. Do you really want to throw all this away?"

The young prince lowered his head.

"Go home and rest. We'll talk more, later." The elderly man patted him on the shoulder then turned and went back to work.

Zuko gave a subtle nod, then headed for the door. Outside, he looked in the direction of their new apartment, then headed down the opposite way.

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(To Be Continued)

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AN: Well, back from my vacation. Florida and Nassau, Bahama were both sunny and warm. My wife and I had a great time. Nice way to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary, don't you think?

Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm well on my way to completing chapter 6 so the next two chapter should be up pretty soon. Please let me know what you think of it so far.

A. Amishi


	5. Chapter 5: Facing the Enemy

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.

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Avatar: The Last Airbender: Destiny

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Chapter 5: Facing the Enemy

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"Auuh!" The former Fire Nation general rubbed the back of his neck upon walking into his new apartment. It was completely dark except for the light from the street lamps which flickered in through the open window. "Hmm, Prince Zuko must be asleep." Iroh whispered to himself.

Making his way to the table, he lit a candle and pulled a chair out to sit for the first time all day. "Auuh… my feet are killing me." He brought his foot up over his knee and started rubbing it, straining a bit in the process. "This was a whole lot easier to do about five-hundred meals ago."

A thought suddenly occurred to him and he looked over at the entrance. There on the floor were his shoes but no others. "Zuko." He jumped to his feet, grabbed the candle and headed for his nephew's bedroom. Sliding the door open slowly, and holding the candle so only a minimal amount of light filtered in, he peered inside. "Zuko," Iroh called out, but there was no one inside, the bed was clearly un-slept in. "No."

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Aang tossed and turned all night, waking up abruptly from the flash of pain which shot through his knee or his shoulder. Despite her best efforts, Katara was unable to completely heal Aang with just one treatment, having suffered a strained knee and a dislocated shoulder. Lying on his back caused his shoulder to hurt, but when he tried rolling on his opposite side, the pain in his knee would flare up. Wearily, he sat up and rubbed his eyes, whispering, "Maybe if I sleep sitting up it won't hurt as much."

He used a small blast of air to help him to his feet and made his way out of his bedroom. Crossing the main room, he limped over to the sofa and tossed the pillows onto the floor. Glancing out the open window just before he was about to sit down, he noticed someone standing outside. Leaning forward he squinted in order to get a better look at the person in the darkness, and while he could not make the man out clearly, the scar was unmistakable.

"Aah!" Aang jumped back and raised his guard, but the solitary figure did not move. He drew a step closer and strained to get another look. Maybe he didn't see me, he thought, but after staring a few moments longer it was clear that the person was looking right at him. "Why doesn't he attack?" Aang wondered. Slowly, he made his way to the door, and readied himself as he reached for it. Slipping his hand between the doors, he released a gust of wind causing both doors to slide open while he quickly jumped back. "What do you want?" He said firmly but softly.

"I just want to talk." Zuko replied.

"Then talk."

"I'd preferred it if we weren't interrupted."

Aang looked towards the other bedrooms then gave a subtle nod. He walked out the door with his guard still up, ready to defend himself.

"Don't worry, I didn't come here to fight… at least not tonight." Zuko assured him.

Cautiously, Aang lowered his guard. "What do you want to talk about?"

Zuko looked up at the house again. "Nice place you have here."

"Thanks, so what do you want?" Aang replied impatiently.

"I don't know how long you've been here in Ba Sing Se, and I don't care. My uncle and I have been here for a couple months now, we just moved into the Upper Ring." Zuko continued.

"So, what's your plan? Infiltrate the government and take Ba Sing Se from the inside? I won't let you." Aang readied to fight once more.

"No. That's not it at all. You don't understand." Zuko sighed. "My uncle and I are fugitives. We're wanted by the Fire Nation as well as by the Earth Kingdom. My father has even sent my own sister out to capture me and bring me back in chains." His breathing became labored. "We've taken new identities and came here as refugees. We've been working at a tea shop in the Lower Ring and only recently opened our own shop here in the Upper Ring. We've made a new life for ourselves here, a peaceful one. And I don't want it to end." He turned to face the avatar. "Not by you or your friends."

"How can I trust you? How do I know this isn't all a plot to gain a Fire Nation foot-hold inside the city?" Aang countered.

"You don't." Zuko snapped but calmed quickly. "All I can give you is my word, as a Prince of the Fire Nation and a refugee living in hiding within the Earth Kingdom Capital."

Aang considered Zuko's words then asked, "What do you go by here? I don't want to call you by your name by mistake and get you in trouble."

"I go by the name of Li, and my Uncle is Mushi."

"Mushi?" Aang covered his mouth and snickered.

Zuko gave him a stern look.

"Sorry." Aang cleared his throat and wiped the grin from his face.

"Ba Sing Se is an enormous city, if we're lucky, we'll never see each other again." Zuko started walking away. "And that will be just fine by me."

Aang stared after him for a moment before turning towards the house. He gasped in surprise sawing Katara standing at the doorway, he eyes wide with shock.

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As quietly as he could, Zuko entered the apartment he shared with his uncle. After closing the door, he slipped his shoes and stepped up into the living area. "Uncle?" The prince gasped, surprised to see the old man sitting on the floor, meditating. "What are you doing here at this time of night?"

"I could ask you the same thing, nephew." The gray haired man responded grimly.

"I-I couldn't sleep, so I went for a walk." Zuko started to head for his room.

"Please do not insult my intelligence by lying to me." Iroh closed his eyes and continued his meditation exercises.

Zuko stopped with his hand upon the sliding door. Lowering his head and his voice, he replied. "You're right. I never came here at all. I went looking for the Avatar and I found him."

"Zuko, what have you done?" For an elderly fat man, Iroh rose to his feet with surprising speed.

"We just talked, that's all. I told him we were refugees. I told him I wasn't interested in fighting anymore." He paused for a moment. "I told him if we were lucky, we'd never see each other again."

Iroh smiled warmly.

"I'm tired now Uncle. I'll see you in the morning." He stepped in his room.

Before Zuko closed the door, Iroh replied, "Sleep well, dear nephew."

The prince looked back and saw the pride in his uncle's eyes that he had for him.

"Thank you Uncle. Goodnight." He closed his door and went to sleep.

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Late afternoon the next day, Sokka and Katara carried a battered and bruised Aang into the house. Toph strolled in a moment later stretching her arms high above her head and cracking her knuckles in the process. "Twinkletoes, you've got a lot to learn before you can honestly say you've mastered earthbending, a lot to learn." She grinned wickedly.

Katara shot the young earthbending master a dirty look, and countered. "You don't have to keep gloating Toph. It's not like Aang ever claimed to be better than you."

"And it's a good thing too, otherwise I would have gone primal on his butt." Toph plopped down on the sofa causing a small dust cloud to rise up. She lifted her hand, and gathered all the dust in the air and the remaining earth on her clothes into a tight little ball and tossed it out the window.

After setting Aang down on the mat she used to treat him the previous day, Katara asked her brother to fetch some clean water, and she proceeded to undress the avatar while she waited for Sokka to return.

With each article of clothing, Aang winced and clenched his teeth in pain but fought the urge to scream out loud.

"Sorry," Katara apologized for the third time.

Returning with a large bowl of water and a clean cloth, Sokka set it down next to his sister. "You guys need to stop beating up Aang. If the Fire Nation were to attack right now, we'd be in a world of trouble because you both felt the need to teach him a listen."

Katara bent some water into her hands and gently started working it over Aang. "We weren't beating him up. We were just testing him to see how far he's come."

"Funny," Aang moaned. "It sure felt like you guys were beating me up."

"See." Sokka added for punctuation.

"I'm sorry Aang." The young waterbender looked sadly down upon the battered avatar. "And I'm sure Toph is sorry too." She turned towards the earthbender and raised her voice. "Aren't you Toph?"

"Yeah, whatever." The blind girl waved dismissively.

Katara scowled at the girl but smiled when she turned back towards Aang. "See."

"It's okay Katara. I need to find out how strong a waterbender and earthbender I've become. Obviously, not nearly strong enough." The airbender flinched in pain.

"Sorry." Katara worked her healing powers over his shoulder and down his arm.

"Well, one thing is for sure." Sokka interjected, and Aang and Katara turned to listen. "We don't have to worry about finding a firebending master for awhile." He straightened up and walked over by the sofa. "Come on Toph, lets get something to eat."

"Sure." The pre-teen girl sprang to her feet. "Fighting always makes me hungry."

"We'll be back with food in a little while." He nodded to his sister and opened the door for the girl before walking out himself.

Katara continued working on Aang's wounds in silence, struggling to keep from looking up into the boy's eyes.

After several tense minutes, Aang whispered. "I know you want to ask me about last night, don't you?"

Katara bit her lower lip and continued to work on Aang's wound, still refraining from looking up at his face.

"Talk to me Katara. Please."

Finally, she stopped what she was doing but just looked down at her hands, resting them on her lap. "What were you doing talking to Zuko?"

Aang painfully struggled to sit up.

"You shouldn't!" Katara tried to ease him back down but Aang insisted.

After taking a few shallow breaths to ease his pain, Aang looked up into Katara's worried eyes. "Zuko came by to tell me that he and his uncle are living here in Ba Sing Se. And to tell me that he doesn't want to fight anymore."

Katara looked back down at her hands. "And you believed him? You honestly think you can trust him?"

"I want to trust him." Aang paused, searching for a way to put the girl's mind at ease. "He says he's been living in the city for a couple months now, working in a teashop in the Lower Ring. He and his Uncle recently purchased their own shop here in the Upper Ring. He seemed serious about wanting to live a peaceful life."

"So he's been here for months, watching you, studying your weaknesses, learning where you live." Katara warned.

"If he really wanted to attack me, he could have done it last night while I was sleeping or while we talked. I was in no condition to fight then, but he didn't." Aang reached out and placed his hand over Katara's. "I'm not saying we shouldn't be cautious but I don't think we need to fear him either."

She looked up and was encouraged by Aang's warm, confidence-giving smile. "Well, if you say so, but I think we should let Sokka and Toph know. So they're not surprised if they see him.

"All right." Aang nodded then flinched in pain.

"But now, you need to lie back down and let me finish treating you." Katara slid her hands around his back and helped him down. Retrieving more water from the bowl she continued working on Aang.

"Katara," Aang whispered softly.

"Yes Aang?"

"Thank you, for trusting in me."

She stopped momentarily and smiled at the younger boy. "You're welcome Aang." Then she went back to work, healing his wounds.

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(To Be Continued)

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AN: Well, looks like this story is starting to drew a pretty steady readership. That's nice to see. I have another Avatar story I'm working on that picks up where the season 2 finale leaves off. I'm hoping to make it only 3 or 4 chapters long so they are going to be pretty long chapters. I'm almost done with chapter one so that story should be posted in a few more weeks.

This story hasn't been beta-read so if you encounter any errors, please feel free to let me know and I'll correct them and repost if necessary. I did edit it myself so hopefully it is pretty clean.

Please let me know what you think if my story. Even just a few words go a long way.

Thanks,

A. Amishi


	6. Chapter 6: Shaping Destiny

Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

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Avatar: Destiny

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Chapter 5: Shaping Destiny

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"Well, that wasn't so bad." Aang said happily whorling around the others on an airball as they walked back home.

"Yeah, I guess." Katara half-heartedly agreed. "The people seemed really enthusiastic to see you."

Sokka shook his head. "Yeah, but you saw how Long Feng steered discussion away from the war. Time is running short. The eclipse is going to happen soon and if we don't take advantage of it we could miss our only chance at defeating the Fire Nation before the comet comes."

"He did say he was discussing 'options' with the military council." Toph pointed out.

"Do you really believe that?" Sokka countered.

"Well… no, not really." Toph admitted.

"With only a month before the eclipse, we need to take action. If the Earth Kingdom is going to invade the Fire Nation, it's going to take time to coordinate and execute. An invasion this size takes careful planning. If Long Feng hasn't informed the Earth King and his generals yet, it may already be too late."

Aang hopped off the airball to stand next to Katara. "You're right. We need to take action now."

"Why don't we ask Joo Dee?" Katara said.

"Fine but how do we find her?" Aang responded.

Katara pointed toward the front door of their house. "She's right there."

"Oh, well, that was easy." Aang smiled.

As the foursome walked up the steps to the house, Joo Dee stepped forward and bowed. "Hello Aang, and Katara, and Sokka, and Toph. The Cultural Minister asked me to extend his thanks and humblest gratitude for your appearance in the Lower Ring today. It was a great success. The people were very encouraged by your visit."

"Hmm, you're welcome?" Aang didn't really know how he should respond after all they had talked about on the way home.

"It went so well, in fact, that he asks if you would be willing to make another official appearance later this week in the City Square of the Upper Ring. It would be a big boost to our economy." Joo Dee smiled broadly.

"Well…" Aang searched for the right thing to say, but Sokka answered for him.

"You tell Long Feng that the Avatar will be happy to make an appearance in the Upper Ring. In fact, an appearance by the Avatar with the Earth King and his ministers and generals would go a long way to boosting political and economic confidence in the city."

A hint of nervousness crept in Joo Dee's smile. "Well, yes, I suppose."

"And right after the appearance, we want an audience with the King and his generals to discuss a possible invasion of the Fire Nation." Sokka added.

"Well, I do not think that is possible." Joo Dee quickly countered. "The Earth King is very busy.

"And the Avatar isn't!?" Sokka stomped his foot and leaned in, invading Joo Dee's personal space. "Look, the Earth King only has to run one city. The Avatar has to bring balance to the whole world. Now you tell me, who's more busy?"

"Umm…" A drop of nervous perspiration rolled down Joo Dee's temple.

"That's right! The Avatar!" Sokka answered his own question. "Now go and tell Long Feng to make the necessary arrangments if he expects Aang to continue to play his propaganda game."

Joo Dee looked apprehensively at each of their faces then quickly bowed and ran off.

"Nice going Sokka." Aang nodded with a smile.

"No kidding. I'm impressed, big brother." Sokka smiled proudly at his sister.

"That's telling her!" Toph punched older the boy in the arm, sending hard into the door.

"Thanks." He squeeked as he slid to the floor.

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Zuko stopped sweeping long enough to look out over the empty tables.

"Something wrong, Zuko?" His uncle asked while looking up from tallying the day's receipts.

"I was just thinking…"

"Yes?" Iroh jotted down some figures and continued counting.

"Well, to tell you the truth, I know we've only been open about a week, but we're doing better than I ever thought we would be." Zuko said.

"Hmm, much better than expected." The elderly man agreed. "At this rate, we will need to get a bigger place very soon."

"I suppose we'll be able to make enough to live comfortably here." Zuko rested his chin on the top of the broomstick.

His uncle smiled. "To tell you the truth, three or four people could live comfortably off what we're making."

Zuko looked over. "Really?"

"Really." Iroh smiled. "Have you seen Jin today?"

"As a matter of fact, no, I haven't." The young prince went back to sweeping.

"I can finish up here. Why don't you drop in on your girlfriend? I'm sure she'll be happy to see you."

Zuko set the broom aside. "Thank you, Uncle." Then he untied his apron, laid it on the counter and headed out the door.

Iroh smiled. "To be young and in love." He sighed then went back to work.

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Zuko rapped lightly on the door. A few moments later, Jin's mother slid the door open a crack. "Hello? Oh, Li." She smiled.

The young prince bowed. "Hello Ma'am. Is Jin available?"

"Oh, well… yes, she is, but… it's kind of late." The woman hesitated.

"Yes, I'm sorry for dropping by so late. My uncle and I just closed the tea shop for the day. I was just hoping to see Jin for a minute."

From inside the house, a voice echoed. "Who is it mother!? Is it Li!?"

Zuko smiled to himself as he heard footsteps running towards the door. A second later, Jin slid the door all the way open. "Hi Li." She smiled, then quickly slipped on her shoes. "We'll be back in a minute mother." And she rushed out the door, grabbed Zuko's hand and pulled him down the street.

After running a few blocks, Jin stopped and turned suddenly, wrapping her boyfriend in a tight embrace. "I missed you." She whispered into his chest.

"I'm sorry." Zuko enveloped her in his arms. "We've been really busy. Busier than I thought we'd be." He pressed his cheek to the top of her head. "I've missed you too."

Jin lifted her head and smiled up at the boy she knew as Li. "Father says your teashop is a big success."

Zuko nodded. "Uncle says we'll need a bigger shop sooner than he thought. People are already forming lines outside the store just to drink his tea."

"I'm so happy for you." Jin leaned in and gave her boyfriend a light kiss. Zuko responded by kissing her back more deeply. Jin smiled happily when they separated then took his arm and lead him further down the street towards the park.

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Sitting on the grass next to the small man-made pond in the middle of the park, Jin smiled and laughed at the small fish that splashed at the surface, thinking the flickering lights of the lamps reflecting off the water were food. Zuko looked over at the girl and smiled. Never, in his wildest imagination had he ever thought he could feel so at home, so tranquil with anyone who wasn't Fire Nation, but this girl, who was loud, and aggressive, and assertive, and opinionated, and funny and full of joy and light, filled him in ways no other person ever had. Not since before his mother disappeared had he felt so at peace, so happy with anyone. He watched her closely. Jin was no great beauty. She was rather plain actually with unruly hair, but she had a smile that lit up her entire face, an infectious smile that made everyone around her want to join in with her and smile too.

Before he knew what he was doing, Zuko blurted out, "Jin, I love you."

The girl gasped and turned toward him, her eyes instantly welling up with tears.

Seeing her shocked expression, Zuko panicked. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean… I mean…. I'm sorry." He lept to his feet but before he could escape, Jin reached out, grabbed his hand and gently pulled him back down next to her.

"No, it's all right. Really." She wiped her eyes and smiled. "I'm not crying because I'm upset. I'm crying because I'm happy." Zuko looked even more confused. "This is the first time you've told me you loved me. I always hoped you did, I tried to convince myself you did, but hearing you say it." She started crying again, then threw her arms around his neck. "I love you Li. I love you so much."

Zuko hugged her back, but hearing her call him Li, made his heart sink. "Jin, there's something I have to tell you."

She looked up at him and smiled. "I told you before Li, you don't have to tell me about your past. It's who you are now that matters to me."

"I understand that." He reached behind his neck and gently pulled her arms away from him. "But this has to do with who I am… who I really am."

Jin's heart began to race, matched by her breath, but she nodded and listened intently.

"I love you Jin. I don't think I realized just how much I loved you until now. I want us to be together always. I want us to be a family… to make a family, you and I."

Jin smiled as fresh tears sprang from her eyes.

"And because of that, I think it's important for you to know who I am, who I really am." Zuko felt his heart begin to race.

Jin took her boyfriend's hand into her's. "There's nothing you can tell me Li that could possible change how I feel about you."

Zuko drew in a deep breath and closed his eyes. "I hope you're right, but I'll understand if you're not." He drew in another deep breath and began. "First of all, my name is not Li… it's Zuko, and I wan't a circus performer, I… I'm a prince of the Fire Nation." He went on and explained everything; how his mother died, how he got his scare, how he was banished from his kingdom, how he had spent the last three years of his life searching for the avatar, how he and his uncle were labeled as traitors and were wanted by both the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation, how they took on different identities and came to Ba Sing Se as refugees.

Jin stared at her boyfriend in disbelief. "I don't know whether to believe you or not. If I believe you, that means you're the enemy of everything and everyone I love, but if I don't believe you, then that means you're making all this up just to make it easier for you to break up with me, which means you don't really love me." She stood up and walked to the water's edge.

Zuko gave her a minute before getting up and walking up next to her. "I can prove to you I am who I say I am but in doing so I risk exposing myself." He looked over at her. "But if this is what it takes for you to believe me." He closed his eyes, and put his hands together, then took a stance and thrusted forward with his fingers extended sending a small ball of fire into the pond. It struck the water and hissed, sending up a small pillar of steam.

Jin gasped and took a step back. Zuko turned to face her. "I'm sorry Jin. I never wanted to lie to you. I didn't mean to fall in love with you, but I did."

Tears began to fall from the girls eyes. "So now what? Are you going to kill me? Are you going to try and kill the Earth King?" She wrapped her arms around herself, in a useless attempt to stop her trembling.

"No." Zuko stepped forward and grabbed the girl's arms. "I love you Jin. I would never hurt you." He pulled her into his arms. "And the last thing I want is to upset the peaceful life I've found here." He ran his hand up and down her back. "The man I was is dead. I'm Li of the Earth Kingdom." He hesitated a moment. "And if you'll marry me, I promise never to firebend ever again."

Jin looked up through her tear filled eyes and gazed into Zuko's eyes. "Marry you?" Her lips trembled. "You want me to marry you?"

Zuko smiled. "Nothing would make me happier."

"Oh Li!" She hugged him tightly as tears of joy sprang from her eyes.

"Is that a yes, you'll marry me?" He smirked.

"Yes, yes, yes." She leaned up and kissed him deeply. "Yes, yes, I'll marry you."

For the first time in his life, Zuko felt totally and completely at peace. He could see a bright future for himself with his uncle, wife and children by his side. He would live as a citizen of the Earth Kingdom and never again firebend. For years he saw his destiny leading him down a different path; one filled with suffering and hardship but ultimately leading him back to the Fire Nation and the throne of his fathers. But now, he saw a different destiny, a destiny without pain and hardship, a destiny filled with love and joy. A destiny of a humble teashop owner and his Earth Kingdom wife.

"I promise." He kissed her. "I promise, I'll make your life happy." He kissed her again.

"Being with you makes me happy." She kissed him back, then hugged his, pressing her cheek up against his collarbone. "I love you Li. I'll always love you."

"I'll always love you Jin." Zuko turned and with one arm still around her, slowly guided Jin out of the park.

After a few minutes of silence, Jin giggled. "You know, I should have guessed a long time ago."

"Guessed what?"

"That you weren't who you said you were." She answered. "I mean, you couldn't juggle, you don't know even the most basic customs and the way you lit all those lamps so fast on our first date. I guess, I just didn't want to believe it."

"Does it bother you?" Zuko glanced over. "Knowing who I really am now?"

"It did when you first told me, but to be honest, I have no memory of the war. My parents moved to Ba Sing Se when I was just a baby, and the government frowns on people who talk about the war. Even at home, my parents never talked about it. It's like, I know it's real but not real at the same time." She rested her head on his arm. "If all firebenders are like you, the Earth Kingdom should have surrendered a long time ago and welcomed the Fire Nation with open arms."

"Well, unfortunately, most firebenders aren't like me… I don't think." Zuko tightened his hold on his girlfriend. After a few more minutes of silence, he whispered. "It would be best if you didn't mention anything I told you to anyone, even your parents."

Jin stopped and gave Zuko a hurt look. "You mean I can't tell anyone you asked me to marry you and I said yes?" Then she smirked.

"Well, you can tell them that, just not the other think I told you."

Jin laughed. "Oh Li, you just don't get sarcasm, do you?"

The young prince scratched the back of his head. "No, I guess I don't."

Jin stopped and turned in front of him, and placed her hand upon his cheek. "I'll never tell anyone. Your secret is safe with me. I promise." She leaned forward and kissed him. "As far as I'm concerned, you're Li, the young and handsome teashop owner in Ba Sing Se."

Zuko smiled and kissed her. "Thank you Jin. I knew I could trust you." He kissed her again, then reached up and took her hand. "I need to get you home. I'm sure your mother's worried." She nodded, and they continued walking.

In front of her house, they kissed once more and before he left, Zuko whispered. "Don't tell your parents I asked you to marry me, not yet."

"Why?" Jin frowned sadly.

"Because, I want to ask them properly for your hand. I'll come by in a couple of hours after supper tomorrow, if you think that's a good time," he explained.

"That's a perfect time. Father will be done going over his ledgers by then and should be settling in for the evening, and mother will be done cleaning up. I'll be sure to help her so she's won't be busy when you come." Jin could hardly contain herself. "Mmm, Li, I'm so happy." She hugged him tightly.

"I'm happy to Jin, and after tomorrow we'll be able to share our happiness with everyone." He held her close. After they shared one last kiss, the Earth Kingdom girl slowly slipped out of the young prince's arms and retreated into her home, watching him with loving eyes the entire time.

Zuko smiled to himself and walked home feeling happier then he ever remembered feeling.

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(To Be Coninued)

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AN: This is the first chapter that wasn't first posted on  Please let me know what you think of it? I'd really like to know.

A. Amishi


	7. Chapter 7: Permission to Marry

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.

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Avatar: Destiny

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Chapter 7: Permission to Marry

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Zuko held the small brightly decorated box carefully in his hands as he walked. "Are you sure about this, Uncle?"

"Absolutely. It is always proper to present gifts to the parents when a young man is asking for their daughter's hand in marriage," the elderly man answered while shifting the box he as carrying from one hand to the other.

The two firebenders walked down the street dressed in their brand new Earth Kingdom clothes. Zuko's hair was neatly cut and Iroh's hair and beard were trimmed and perfumed.

"Well, thank you, Uncle, for helping me." Zuko smiled nervously.

"Not at all. Jin is a lovely girl. I'm sure the two of you will be very happy together." Iroh smiled broadly. "You deserve some happiness in your life, my nephew."

Zuko's smile turned into one of sincere gratitude.

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Aang stood in his underwear along the shores of Lake Laogai with the water lapping at his ankles. Katara stood about twenty feet away , knee deep in water while Toph stood firmly on dry land, parallel with Katara, facing her student. The two bending masters took turns launching attacks against the young avatar, who used all three of his bending skills to defend himself. These attacks were nothing like the all out battles they put him through a few days earlier. These were calculated attacks designed to teach Aang to use all three bending disciplines in rapid succession and in combination. None were aimed to hurt him, but still the avatar had to remain on his toes.

Katara launched an array of icicles at Aang, which he blocked with a wall of earth, then Toph raised a ten foot bolder and hurled it at him. This time Aang used a stream of water to slice the bolder in half from top to bottom and the two sides sailed harmlessly past him. Next, Katara sent a six foot wave at him, which Aang disbursed with a mighty gust of wind, turning the wave into a gentle rain. Toph clenched her fists in front of herself and thrusted downward, causing the ground beneath Aang's feet to turn into quicksand. With his arms mostly immobile, the avatar balled his hands then shot them open. This caused the ground around him to turn solid and crack open, he drew water into the crack and formed ice around his legs which allowed him to float to the surface as the crack filled.

Katara smiled to herself, then looked over at Toph. The earthbending master tilted her head towards the waterbending master and while she couldn't see the other girl, she nodded her understanding nonetheless. At the same time, the two bending masters each formed a wall, one of rock, the other of ice and they send them at each other liked an open book being slammed shut, with Aang in the middle. Seeing the walls coming at him, Aang lowered his head and slammed his fists together, forming a whirling ball of air around himself. The instant the two walls hit the giant air ball, they flew apart with debris flying everywhere.

Katara smiled. "That was great Aang!"

"Yeah, not bad Twinkletoes." Toph gave him the thumbs up.

"Thanks." Aang smiled back.

"But we're not done yet." Katara flashed a evil grin and lauched a new attack. Toph laughed and followed suite.

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Zuko sat quietly as his uncle prepared his special blend of teas for Jin's father. A few minutes later, the middle-aged man took a sip and closed his eyes savoring the flavor.

"That is the finest tea I have every tasted," he said smiling broadly, then he took another sip. "You are truly a master at your craft." He bowed his head to Iroh.

"You are too kind." Iroh bowed back.

Turning towards Zuko, the man smiled and said, "My daughter tells me you have something important you wanted to talk to me about." He flashed his daughter a knowing smile. "What could it possibly be that warranted such fine trappings?" Jin's father gestured to the tea he enjoyed and the jade hair comb Zuko gave his wife.

"Mister Juno," Zuko bowed low. "I've come here today to humbly request your daughter's hand in marriage and ask for your blessing."

Jin's mother, who was sitting at the side next to her daughter placed one hand over her mouth to stifle her scream of excitement, and clutched her daughter's hand with her other. The two women smiled at each other then looked over with anticipation to the head of the household.

Lin Juno, Jin's father, struggled to suppress his own joy. As happy as he was for his daughter, business was business, including the business of marriage, and while it took some of the romance out of the occasion, it was a necessary part of life in the Earth Kingdom. "You are a fine young man, Li." He started. "And you have a fine mentor in your uncle."

Iroh bowed, "Thank you."

Lin acknowledged the older man then continued, "But you have only begun your business. I hardly believe you have saved enough to put together a proper dowery especially since you have yet to make your first installment on the loan I gave you."

"Dowery?" Zuko gave his uncle a confused look.

There was a moment of uncomfortable silence. The tradition of providing the bride's family with a dowery was one that was done away with in the Fire Nation long before Zuko was even born and was only practiced in the Earth Kingdom as a way of showing upper or middle class families that a prospective husband of questionable means was actually able to take care of their daughter. It took a moment for Iroh to remember the tradition but when he did, he knew just what to do.

"Mister Juno, if you please." The older man bowed once again. "While I have tried to be an adequete mentor to my nephew, I'm afraid I have overlooked some of our oldest and dearest customs, so please allow me."

"By all means." Jin's father nodded his approval.

Iroh continued, "While it is true we have only begun our business here, our first week's receipts are very encouraging. In fact, I'm sure we will be able to pay you back in half the time we agreed in our contract. And while you are correct in saying Li does not have the necessary funds for a proper dowery for a young lady as refined as Jin," He smiled over at the girl who grinned back at him and rolled her eyes humorously. "He is willing to negotiate a minority ownership in our teashop."

Zuko shot his uncle a stare but managed to check his tongue.

"Continue." Jin's father raised a curious eyebrow.

"Li is willing to offer you a …" Iroh stroked his beard pensively. "Ten percent share in the teashop on top of what we owe you for helping us get the business started."

"Mmm," Lin ran the back of his finger back and forth under his chin. "The offer is very tempting, but who is to say the success you're currently experiencing will continue? It may just be the fad of a new shop opening."

"That may be true." Iroh acknowledged. "Consider this… if your ten percent share matches the amount you loaned us in one year's time, then the deal is done, but if it does not, then after that one year, we will increase your share to thirty percent."

Jin's father's eyes went wide. "You are willing to hand over thirty percent of your business for my daughter?" He turned towards Li.

Zuko looked over at Jin who as staring at him with shimmering eyes and a sweet, loving smile. "Yes, yes I am."

Then Iroh jumped in, "Of course, we expect the shop to continue to be as successful as it has been. If that is the case then your share will remain at ten percent."

"If it continues to be as successful as it is now, ten percent will be more than adequate." Mister Juno acknowledged, then turned to his daughter. "Jin, come here."

The girl rose and walked over next to her father then sat back down.

Lin took his daughter's hand and smiled at her, then turned towards Zuko and extended his other hand to the young prince. "Li, will you come here please."

Zuko stood up and walked over, sitting back down in front of the older man.

Taking Zuko's hand, Lin place it over his daughter's hand. "It is clear to me, that you have my daughter's best interest at heart. And that my daughter loves you very much. Protect her and provide for her."

Zuko nodded.

He turned to face his daughter. "Love and honor him always in all things."

Jin nodded happily.

"Li, I give you my blessing and my permission to marry my daughter." Lin withdrew his hands from the young couple, pressed them together and bowed.

Zuko gently squeezed Jin's hand and smiled, then he bowed to her father. "Thank you, sir. I promise, I will be a good husband to your daughter."

"I'm sure you will be, son." Jin's father stood up and gestured for his wife to follow him and they left the room.

Zuko took Jin's hand into both of his and leaned forward to kiss her. She did the same.

"I'm so happy," she whispered in his ear and they kissed again.

"I'm so happy too!" Came the weeping cry behind them.

Zuko's face turned bright red. "Uncle." But Jin smiled and got up, and hugged Iroh warmly.

"Thank you Uncle Mushi." She kissed him on the cheek. "This wouldn't have been possible if it weren't for you."

The elderly man blushed. "Aah, well."

"Yes, thank you Uncle." Zuko said, standing in front of the man with his hand extended. Iroh took his nephew's hand and found himself pulled upright, then hugged.

Iroh wiped his eyes dry, his heart filled with joy for the young couple. "I'll write up the contract with your father." He bowed and walked out of the room.

Jin waited until they were alone then she hugged and kissed Zuko again. "I love you so much."

Zuko hesitated, blushed a bright red then replied. "I love you too, Jin."

She laughed softly. "It's hard for you to say it, isn't it?"

"Well… yeah. It's embarrassing." He held her tight.

She laughed again in his chest, then nussled close and whispered. "That's okay. You don't have to say it. Just show me you love me. That's all I need."

Zuko held her tight and kissed her on the forehead. Jin looked up into his eyes and they kissed again.

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Aang and his friends made their way through the market district buying some needed supplies as they walked off the hearty lunch they ate over two hours ago.

"What about this?" Sokka rushed over to one shop and pointed at the small brass gong, picked up its small hammer and struck it." He smiled, way too content with himself.

"And what do we need a gong for?" Katara asked impatiently.

"Well… you could use it to let us know when dinner is ready." Her brother grinned.

Katara gave him a evil stare.

"Or we could use it to signal when Sokka has a clue." Toph countered.

With a wicked grin crossing her lips, Katara added, "In that case, we'll never have to use it."

Aang and the two girl's laughed at Sokka's expense, then continued down the street.

"We could use some new firestarters." Katara picked up a pair of flint stones at the next shop. She paid the shopkeeper and placed the rocks in her bag.

They spent the next hour picking up odds and ends, and spending as little as possible. While everyone was feeling the heat from the afternoon sun, no one thought of seeking any relief until Toph spoke up. "I'm getting awefully thirsty. Can we get something to drink?"

"Good idea," Sokka agreed. "How about some tea?" He pointed at the small teashop at the corner and they started walking towards it.

As they drew near, Aang saw the name of the shop over the door. "The Jade Dragon?" he whispered, trying to remember where he had heard that name before. Finally, it came to him. "Listen you guys, I don't think we should go in there."

"Why not?" Toph asked innocently.

"Is something wrong, Aang?" Katara placed a concerned hand on his elbow.

"I just don't think we should go in that teashop."

Realization hit Katara first and she looked over at the quaint little shop, which had a steady flow of people walking in and out. "Is this _his_ shop?" she whispered.

"I'm not one hundred percent certain, but I think so," Aang answered.

"Who's shop?" Toph was beginning to show some frustration.

Katara looked around to make sure no one was in eavesdropping distance of them, then she whispered softly. "This might be the teashop owned by Zuko and his Uncle." Katara glanced over at Aang, then continued. "I don't think we should go in here. It's probably best to stay as clear of Zuko as we can."

Sokka shook his head. "I disagree. Going in here is a good way to find out, for sure, if he's really changed his ways, and unless we confront him sometime, we'll basically be living in fear while we're in this city."

"I agree with Sokka," Toph said firmly. "Besides, I've been looking for a chance to kick some firebender butt, so just let him try something while I'm around."

"Shhh… Keep it down Toph." Katara warned.

"Why?"

"Because I promised not to make any trouble for Z… Li, as long as he kept his promise as well. And so far he has," Aang explained.

"Fine, but I'm still thirsty." Toph folded her arms over her chest.

"And I still think it can't hurt just going in for some tea." Sokka added.

Aang looked over at his waterbending master. "Katara?"

Her expression of concern and hesitation were plainly visible upon her face.

"W-whatever you say Aang."

"Well then, if you two want to stir up trouble, go ahead. I'm going home." Aang walked off.

"Wait for me Aang." Katara hurried to catch up with him.

"Well," Toph smiled. "Ready to stir things up?"

"Sure." Sokka took Toph's hand and lead the way into the teashop.

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(To Be Continued)

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AN: Before anyone sends a review stating that doweries are given by the daughter's parents to the prospective husband, the tradition used to be the other way around at least 4,000 years ago. Since, personally, that always made more sense to me, that is the way I chose to use it. Of course, I didn't have to use it at all, since there is no evidence in the show that such traditions were followed in the world of Avatar, but it seemed like a good way to show Zuko's sincere feelings for Jin to her parents.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter.

A. Amishi


	8. Chapter 8: Searching for the Words

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.

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Avatar: Destiny

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Chapter 8: Searching for the Words

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Aang dragged himself into the house, kicked off his shoes, and stumbled his way to the table where he plopped down and let his forehead hit to table. "I shouldn't have let them go to that teashop," he mumbled. "Ouch."

Katara closed the door behind her and slipped off her shoes, setting them to the side and placing Aang's next to hers. "Don't worry." She tried to ease his concern. "Sokka can do some stupid things sometimes but he's not a complete idiot. I'm sure he'll just try to have some fun at Zuko's expense."

"Oh my goodness!" Aang shot upright. "I need to drag them back here now!" However, before he could stand up, Katara placed her hands upon his shoulders.

"Relax, Aang. I'm sure everything is fine. Besides, if anything were going to happen, it would have happened already. So rushing off won't do anyone any good."

Aang glared up at her over his shoulder. "Thanks Katara. That just makes me feel so much better."

Katara smiled weakly and gave a nervous laugh. "Sorry." She kneaded his shoulders a bit. "I'll make us some tea." She stood upright and walked into the kitchen.

Aang sighed and lowered his head to the table again.

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"Maybe Aang was right." Toph hesitated at the door of the Jade Dragon. "Maybe we shouldn't tempt fate."

"I just want to see if they've really turned over a new leaf." Sokka countered. "Just because… Li told Aang they were just looking to live peacefully here, that doesn't make it true. And you know Aang; he's too quick to think the best of everyone."

"Yeah, he is kinda naïve." Toph agreed. "Well, as long as you promise not to make a scene."

Sokka pulled open the door and gave Toph a gentle push in the small of her back. "Who, me?"

"Jerk." Toph laughed as she walked in and stopped almost instantly. "What's with the line?" She asked the tall, well-dressed man in front of her.

It took the man a minute to realize he was being addressed. Looking down at the two youths, he smirked with an air of superiority. "Just waiting to be seated. The Jade Dragon is the busiest and best teashop in all of Ba Sing Se." The person in front of the man stepped up so he shuffled up a spot as well.

Looking around, Sokka saw that while the shop was small it was filled with tables and every single one of them was occupied with tea drinking customers, and that there seemed to be at least five parties ahead of them. "Well, if you're really that thirsty, we probably want to go somewhere else. It's going to take forever before we get seated here." Sokka whispered to Toph.

Just then, Toph heard a familiar voice. "Two cups of Jasmine and a pot of Ginseng coming right up."

"Yeah, I know that voice." Toph smiled, then stomped her foot to the floor causing the aisle between her and the front counter to shift, moving everyone who was in front of her out of her way. As she ran up to the counter, the aisle shifted back to normal. Sokka, who also fell over like everyone else managed to spring back to his feet and followed closely behind Toph before anyone else could get up. "Hi!" Toph smiled wide, slipping behind the counter and standing so close to Iroh, he had to raise the tray of tea he was holding high to keep her from knocking it out of his hands.

"Well, if it isn't my small but independent friend." Iroh grinned happily. "What brings you here today?"

"We were hoping to have some tea but I guess you're really busy." She answered.

"Say! What's the big idea?" Two of the customer's who were waiting in line barked at almost the same time, having gotten to their feet.

"Sorry for the trouble sir." Zuko set his empty tray on the counter and turned towards the waiting customers. "A table has just come available. Won't you follow me?" He gestured to the two stout men, whose anger dissipated almost instantly as they followed him to the table.

Iroh set the tray of Jasmine and Ginseng teas down on the counter. "This is an unexpected surprise, but as you said, we are very busy."

"Not a problem, we can come back some other time." Toph smiled.

Sokka raised a questioning eyebrow. "You two know each other?"

Toph nodded, "We met in the forest, after I left you guys, when those crazy girls were chasing us. I knocked him down and he gave me tea and some good advice. Oh, by the way, this is Sokka. He's my friend. Sokka, this is…" A questioning expression played across her face. "You know, I never did get your name."

"I know who he is." Sokka replied coldly.

"Mushi, the name is Mushi, but you can call me Uncle Mushi if you like." Iroh patted Toph on the shoulder.

"Uncle Mushi, I like that." She grinned.

"What are _you_ doing here?" Zuko asked, glaring at Sokka as he picked up the tray of tea.

Sokka glared back. "I could ask you the same thing."

"I thought we had an understanding?"

"You do, with Aang. That's why he's not here. I just wanted to see for myself."

"See what?"

"If the great Prin –" Zuko glared daggers at Sokka and Iroh suddenly coughed, stopping Sokka in mid-sentence. "Li was actually reduced to serving tea for a living."

Hate flared up in the young prince's eyes, but before he could respond, his uncle replied, "There is nothing wrong with good, honest work. Whether a prince or a peasant, we all must find our way in life and do our very best with the life we have been given."

"See what I mean." Toph smiled. "Good advice."

Zuko took a deep breath. "Uncle, I need three cups of Ginseng for table four, and two cups of Oolong and two of Lung Ching for table twelve." Then he went back to work serving tea.

"I wish you would refrain from teasing my nephew." Iroh spoke directly to Sokka in a gentle, passive voice. "I know you must hate him deeply for what he put you and your friends through for so long, but he is honestly trying to change and make a new life here… we both are."

"Hi, Uncle Mushi!"

Everyone turned to see a young lady waving enthusiastically from the back of the shop. The people in the aisle moved aside without hesitation and addressed the girl in a friendly manner as she walked by. She smiled and spoke to each of them in a warm and familiar voice, waving and laughing as she approached the counter. Slipping behind the counter, she gave Iroh a big hug and kiss on the cheek. "How are you today, Uncle?"

"Uncle?" Sokka whispered, but it went unnoticed.

"I'm fine. Doing what I love." He turned away for a moment then placed two cups of Oolong tea on a tray.

"Jin?"

The girl turned, "Li!" She leaned over the counter to kiss her fiancé. He responded in kind automatically but catching Sokka in the corner of his eye, he turned at the last moment, and Jin ended up kissing him on the cheek.

"What are you doing here?" Zuko whispered.

"I thought I'd stop by for a cup of tea and for a chance to spend a little time with my husband-to-be." She ran her hand over his cheek and kissed his nose.

"I think I'm going to be sick…" Sokka grumbled. "Wait, husband-to-be?"

Jin turned and looked at Sokka and Toph for the first time. "Oh, I'm sorry. How rude of me." She extended her hand to Sokka. "Hi, my name's Jin. Nice to meet you." She smiled broadly.

The water tribe warrior was taken aback by the girls forward attitude, drawing back slightly and staring at her hand, not sure what to do with it. Finally, he gave her a mild grin and took her hand. "Hi, I'm Sokka, and this is my friend Toph." He broke Jin's firm grip and gestured to the younger girl next to him.

"Hi." Toph gave a quick wave in Jin's direction.

"Hi." Jin smiled. Suddenly, her eyes went wide with realization. "Were you friend's of Li's… before he came to Ba Sing Se?"

"No!" Zuko snapped.

"You could say that." Iroh stroked his beard and nodded.

Sokka looked at Zuko, then over at Iroh, and finally at Jin, and flashed her a crooked smile. "Yeah, sure, why not."

"Great!" Jin clapped happily. "Please, stay and have tea with me? I want to hear all about Li and the silly things he used to do before he came to Ba Sing Se."

"Jin!" Zuko snapped again.

"I'm just kidding, Li." She stroked his hand reassuringly, and then turned back to Sokka, "But you will stay and have tea with me?"

"Sure." Sokka nodded, grinning at Zuko, and then putting his arm around Toph's shoulder, he added. "We'd love to have tea with you. Wouldn't we, Toph?"

"Sure. I'm still thirsty," the earthbending master replied.

"It's settled then. Uncle Mushi, can we have a pot of green tea please?" Jin asked.

"Coming right up." Iroh smiled and went back to work.

Zuko glared at Sokka and let out a low grumble before picking up the tray with four cups on it and taking it to the waiting table.

"But the shop is full. Where are we supposed to sit?" Sokka asked.

Jin smiled, "Follow me." She walked around to the front of the counter and over to the left. Slipping her fingers into the small grove in the panel, she lifted a section of it then pulled down a leg that was tucked under it.

"Ah, I see." Sokka walked around to the other side and pulled down the other leg, creating a table for four.

In the space concealed by the makeshift table, were four stools. Sokka reached in and pulled two of them out for him and Toph. Jin pulled her own out and sat down.

"Li built this for me and my family so we never have to wait for a seat, even when it's busy like today." She gestured towards the rest of the shop.

"Well, wasn't that nice of… Li." Sokka smiled.

Jin laughed. "Yeah, he's so sweet. He's afraid to show it but deep down he's really sensitive and caring."

"Yeah," Sokka nodded. "Deep down, _way_ deep down."

Toph slid her foot back slightly and hit her heel to the floor, causing the ground under the back leg of Sokka's stool to sink, sending the young warrior falling backwards to the floor with a yelp. "You two seem very happy together. Have you known each other long?"

"Only a couple of months, but it was love at first sight… at least for me." Jin smiled. "And yes, we are very happy. In fact, we're engaged." She put her hands over her mouth and giggled joyfully. "He asked my parents for permission to marry me just yesterday and they said yes."

"Here is your tea." Iroh placed the pot and three cups on the counter.

Sokka, who had gotten up anyway and repositioned his stool, took the tea and the cups and set them on the table. He filled each cup and took a long slow slip. "Mmm, this is good tea."

"The best in Ba Sing Se." Jin smiled between sips.

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"Mmm, good tea, Katara." Aang smiled happily, taking another long drink.

"Thanks Aang." She smiled over her cup and took another sip.

They continued smiling and sipping their tea in awkward silence for several, more minutes. Rarely was Aang ever completely alone with Katara. Usually, his earthbending teacher or her brother was nearby, or he was flat on his back receiving treatment for the latest injuries he had suffered during training. Not the ideal time to profess your true feelings to someone, he reasoned. However, here they were, alone, as equals, enjoying a nice cup of tea with no one around to disturb them.

Aang cleared his throat and drew in a steadying breath. "Katara?" He could feel his heart beginning to race, but he was committed to telling her.

"Yes, Aang?" The beautiful waterbender smiled at him in her sweet innocent manner. Aang's heart melted and he nearly forgot what he was going to say. "Ummm …" He looked down at his cup then quickly looked back up at her. "Good tea!" He smiled.

"You-u already said that," Katara reminded him.

"Oh, yeah."

"Is something wrong, Aang?"

"Well, not exactly."

"Are you still upset over Sokka and the teashop?" She reached out and placed her hand over his.

Aang's cheeks suddenly got very warm. "Huh? N-no, that's not it."

"Well, what is it then?"

Now Aang was feeling guilty for worrying Katara. He took another cleansing breath. _You can do this. Just tell her how you feel. What's the worst that can happen?_ Aang suddenly went very pale, but he shook his head and plunged foreword. "Katara, there's something I've wanted to tell you for a long time now. Something important." He paused for a moment, gathering his courage. "Katara, I-"

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

Aang slumped over. _I'm never going to get to tell her. _"Why is Sokka knocking? It's not like it's locked."

"I don't think it is Sokka and Toph." Katara stood up. "He never knocks, no matter what." She headed for the door.

Aang sighed, then got up and followed his waterbending master.

Katara slid the door opened. "Joo Dee? This is a surprise."

"Hello Katara and Aang." The messenger from the Dai Lee gave them a large toothy grin. "So very nice to see you." She peered into the house around them for a moment. "Aren't Sokka and Toph around?"

"They went out for tea," Katara answered. "Is something wrong?"

"No, not at all." Joo Dee turned her attention to Aang. "I just came to tell you that your appearance this Saturday will be at the Palace entrance at three oh-clock. The Earth King's Military Council will be there as well, and the Earth King will make a brief appearance. Afterwards, you and your friends will be granted an audience with his Majesty and his Council as long as you refrain from mentioning the war during your appearance."

"That's great!" Katara could hardly contain herself.

"Yeah! No problem. No one will hear a word about the war from me." Aang said confidently.

"Very good." Joo Dee bowed. "Well, Aang, Katara, see you on Saturday." Then she turned and walked over to the waiting carriage, got in and rode off."

"That's great." Katara said excitedly.

"Yeah."

"We need to go tell Sokka and Toph." The waterbender pulled her shoes on quickly and hurried out the door. "Come on Aang!"

The Avatar sighed and got his shoes on as well, then closed the door behind him

Already halfway down the street, Katara stopped abruptly and ran back to Aang. "I'm sorry, Aang. You were trying to tell me something before Joo Dee showed up."

Aang looked up into Katara's warm, trusting eyes with a hint of excitement and expectation but after considering what had just happened and where they were off to, he just smiled. "It can wait. This is more important." He took the girl's hand. "Come on, let's find Sokka and Toph." And they ran down the street together.

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(To Be Continued)

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AN: It took awhile to get reviews, but from the few I did receive I guess most of you liked my last chapter. I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well. Please take a moment to let me know.

By the way, I have created my own MySpace website. It is at  drop by my sight and tell me what you think. I've added links to all my fanfics there as well, so please feel free to share the site with your friends as well.

A. Amishi


	9. Chapter 9: Attack on Ba SIng Se 1

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.

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Avatar: Destiny

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Chapter 9: Attack on Ba Sing Se (Part 1)

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There were easily over fifty thousand people crowded around the main gate to the palace, not including the two hundred Dai Li agents who patrolled the platform and the two thousand regular soldiers who worked to maintain order among the crowd.

"Thanks for coming with me, Li." Jin hugged her boyfriend tightly as she giggled happily. "I know this is the last place you'd like to be right now, and I just want you to know how much a appreciate you being here with me."

Zuko hugged Jin back and kissed her on the top of her head. "You're welcome, but to tell you the truth, my Uncle would have dragged me here anyway."

Just then Iroh came squeezing through the crowd to stand next to them with three pennants in his hand each saying AVATAR on them. "Look at what I bought for us." He handed one to Jin who took it and waved it enthusiastically. He tried to hand the second one to his nephew who just scowled at him. Iroh shrugged and proceeded to wave both pennants over his head.

"What is that on your head?" Zuko growled.

"Oh, this?" Iroh pointed to the skullcap he was wearing. It was a pale flesh tone with a light blue arrow pointing down towards his face. "Do you like it? I could get you one too."

"No! Thank you!" Zuko glared coldly at him.

Jin ran her hand up and down Zuko's back to try and calm him. "Well, I think it's cute."

Zuko gave her a stern look and folded his arms over his chest with a humph.

Jin giggled and reached up with her hand and pulled Zuko sideways, down towards her. She kissed him on the cheek and whispered in his ear, "I love you."

Zuko's cold expression melted away as he flashed his fiancée a faint smile and took her hand into his before turning to face the podium again.

Jin ebbed a bit closer to him and rested the side of her head against his shoulder.

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In a small tent behind the platform, Aang and his friends stood waiting to be called up onto the stage. Joo Dee stood smiling next to the tent opening.

Aang paced impatiently back and forth. "So how long before I take the podium? I won't have to say much, right? Just like in the Lower Ring, right? Then we'll be able to meet with the Earth King, right?"

Katara, who had been sitting on a bench next to Toph and Momo, stood up and grabbed Aang's hand as he walked by. He stopped, and she placed her other hand on his shoulder, giving him a reassuring smile. "Relax, Aang. It won't be very long now. After the Earth King hears what we have to say, I'm sure he'll support Sokka's plan to invade the Fire Nation."

"I hope your right Katara." Sokka said, pensively staring at the ground from where he stood in the middle of the tent, leaning against the support beam.

"Of course he will." The waterbending master did her best to sound confident. "Once you explain to him about the comet and then about the eclipse, there's no way the Earth King won't be willing to help."

Sokka looked up and saw Aang's worried expression and Katara's silent plea for support. "Of course he will. There's no reason for him not to. Don't worry Aang; everything's going to work out. You'll see."

Movement from the larger, neighboring tent caught Sokka's eye and he looked over to see Long Feng heading up the platform.

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The first person to walk up onto the podium was Long Feng who thanked everyone for coming and assured the audience that Ba Sing Se had the strongest army in the world, and that the city was the safest and most secure place to live in all the Earth Kingdom. It amazed Sokka how he was able to say all this during his ten minute speech without mentioning the Fire Nation or the war once. Then one by one, Long Feng introduced each general of the Council of Five. They each spoke briefly to the crowd, assuring the people that their armies were ready to face any and all usurpers while at the same time declaring that there was no danger at all. However, some of the generals were less then convincing in expressing this sentiment.

Finally, Long Feng stood on the platform with an overly satisfied grin on his face and began his introduction. "For millennia immemorial, the Avatar has brought balance and peace to the world, but for the past century the world has had to struggle on without his aid. Through all the struggles, we here in Ba Sing Se have not only endured but have thrived and flourished. Under the wise leadership of our glorious king and the strength of our armies lead by the Council of Five, Ba Sing Se has been the beacon, the shining light for the entire world to follow…"

"Laying it on a little thick, isn't he?" Sokka scowled and folder his arms over his chest, as he watched the Cultural Minister from his vantage point by the tent entrance. The others walked over and watched as well.

"Now, during this time of unmatched prosperity and growth throughout the Earth Kingdom, we here in Ba Sing Se have been fortunate enough to receive yet another blessing." Long Feng continued.

"Oh brother," Toph groaned.

"After disappearing over a hundred years ago, he now calls Ba Sing Se, home. Please welcome, Avatar Aang, the last airbender!" Long Feng clapped and stepped aside, gesturing back at the tent for Aang to come out a take the podium.

The huge crowd erupted in applause as Aang walked up and waved.

"He's so young." Jin observed while heartily clapped.

"Young, yet powerful." Zuko stared coldly at the young airbender. Every fiber in his been screamed, _ATTACK!_ Nevertheless, me managed to master himself and stood with his arms folded over his chest.

Iroh clapped along with everyone else. "And he has some very powerful friends as well."

Zuko flashed his uncle a sideways stare and humphed.

Aang continued to wave as the applause showed no sign of slowing down. He then turned back to the tent and gestured for his friends to join him. They hesitated at first but eventually came out and stepped up onto the platform. The applause increased noticeably and the four young people waved happily to the crowd.

After several more minute, the applause slowly died down, giving Aang a chance to speak. "I'd like to thank everyone for coming out today. I know you all have very busy lives and the last thing you really want to do is take time to see a silly little kid."

Everyone laughed loudly and began applauding again.

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Jin laughed. "He's funny."

Zuko glared. "Hilarious."

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"I'd like to introduce you all to my traveling companions and friends. At the end over there is the greatest earthbender I've ever seen and my teaching, Toph Be Fong, also known in fighting circles as the Blind Bandit."

Toph waved as the crowd erupted in thunderous applause.

After a minute, Aang went on. "Next to her is my waterbending master… and best friend, Katara, daughter of Hakoda of the Southern Water Tribe."

Katara flashed Aang a grateful smile while she waved to the crowd who applauded but not as energetically as they had for Toph until Aang added. "Isn't she beautiful?"

This ignited a storm of whistles and hoots, causing Katara to blush a deep red.

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"Is she the Avatar's girlfriend?" Jin asked while standing on her toes to get a better look at the waterbender.

Zuko shot Jin a hard look. "He's just a kid."

Jin laughed, but quickly placed her hands over her mouth to stifle it. "Oh Li. You really don't understand love, do you?"

"I don't?" The Fire Nation Prince cocked an eyebrow.

His fiancée giggled again, slid her pennant into her hair and hugged his arm. "Except for our love."

Zuko smiled down at her and blew her a kiss before facing the platform again.

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The crowd Uuh'ed, Aah'ed, and cheered as Aang demonstrated his airbending abilities which included soaring over the palace gate in his glider. With Katara and Toph's help, he also showed some of his waterbending and earthbending skills to the great joy of the people.

Long Feng clapped along with the crowd, and then he placed a firm hand on the Avatar's shoulder and moved him to the side. "It is my great honor and privilege to present the Earth King, our esteemed Majesty, King Solumane."

The crowd exploded in thunderous applause that was twice as loud as the applause for Aang as the gate to the palace opened and a long slow procession made its way to the platform. Reaching the platform, the King stepped down from his chair and took the podium. He waved in the royal manner while the crowd continued to cheer for another thirty minutes.

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Seeing his girlfriend's reaction as the king took the podium startled the young Fire Nation prince, but not half as much as his uncle's equally enthusiastic cheers.

"Uncle, what are you doing?" Zuko shouted, but Iroh just kept on cheering.

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After about ten minutes, the audience settled down and the King finally spoke. "My people, my children. I share with you the great joy and pleasure that comes with welcoming the Avatar to our glorious city…"

Aang, Katara and Toph stood at the side of the platform, listening and applauding along with the crowd as the King spoke. Katara flashed a look at her brother and whispered. "I know what he's saying is a lie but we need to keep Long Feng happy, at least until we finally speak with the King."

Sokka, whose eyes were locked on the skies above, barely registered what his sister had said, "Huh?"

"Clap Sokka," Katara whispered through a fake smile.

Instead of following his sister's instructions, the young water tribe warrior pointed to the approaching storm clouds that was crossing over the inner wall of the city. "Do those look like normal storm clouds to you?"

Katara looked up. "What are you talking about?" Her eyes went wide at the sight of the large cluster of black clouds moving slowly over the city. "What is that?"

"They're darker than any storm clouds I've ever seen," Sokka observed.

"And there's no rain or lightning coming from them," Katara added.

"Oop, spoke too soon." Sokka pointed at the clouds again. "Look at that flash."

They continued to stare as the bright blue flash of lightning streaked down and hit the inner wall. Even from the palace gate, which was miles away from the inner wall, they could feel the force with which the lightning struck the wall.

The crowd around the palace stopped clapping and turned with startlement towards the source of the impact. The King stood dumbfounded, not sure what to make of what just happened.

Long Feng quickly approach the podium. "May I, your Majesty?" He bowed.

"Yes, of course." The king nodded and stepped behind Aang and the others.

"Fellow citizens of Ba Sing Se," Long Feng spoke loudly to get everyone's attention. "There is nothing to worry about, simply a lightning storm but for your safety, I encourage everyone to please head home and seek shelter until the storm passes. An official notice of the Avatar's next public appearance will be posted soon."

"Sokka?" Katara's worried expression said it all.

"I know," her brother replied. "That was no ordinary lightning blast."

"Azula." Aang frowned.

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"Who?" Jin asked.

"My sister, Azula." Zuko grabbed Jin roughly by the elbow and started guiding her through the crowd. "Come on! I have to get you home!"

Jin offered no resistance.

Zuko stopped only for a moment and looked back. "Uncle?"

A deadly serious expression made its way across the elderly man's face. He tossed down the pennants and pulled off the skullcap, then shrugged off the long vest he was wearing. "It is time someone stood up to that crazy sister of yours. It is time someone put her in her place." He took a fighting stance, and then flashed a look over at Zuko. "Go! Protect Jin and her family!"

Zuko hesitated for only a moment, then nodded and rushed off with Jin in tow. "Come on!"

"But what about your, uncle?" Jin's voice trembled.

"He'll be alright. He's a master," Zuko assured her. "I need to get you to safety." They ran past hordes of people who were walking from the palace gate, mumbling their disappointment at having the Avatar's appearance cut short.

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"Aang, what do we do?" Katara asked with deep concern.

Aang looked over at Sokka. "Can it really be Azula? I mean, how could she be flying?"

Sokka shook his head. "I don't know but we better not take any chances. We need to get the Earth King and his generals to safety, just in case."

"You needn't concern yourselves." Long Feng approached. "It is just a storm. The King and his generals are already heading for shelter in the palace. Unfortunately, due to the sudden change of plans, the Earth King will be unable to see you now. You should all head home and I'm sure I'll be able to arrange an audience with the King for you at your next public appearance." He smiled wickedly.

"You planned this all along!" Sokka shouted, shaking his fist at the Cultural Minister.

"Nonsense!" Long Feng straightened up to his full height and stared down his long nose at Sokka. "How could I have known a lightning storm was approaching? As if I could control the skies." He gestured towards the clouds and stole a quickly glance. What he saw caused him to freeze in terror.

Aang and the others turned and looked as well.

"By the spirits." Katara gasped.

"What? What is it?" Toph demanded to know.

"It's a fireball and it's heading right for us!" Sokka shouted.

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(To Be Continued)

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AN: Sorry to stop at a cliffhanger but what follows next will take too long to include in this chapter. I promise to start working on the next chapter as soon as possible and get it posted as fast as I can. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you did, please let me know. Even a few words of encouragement go along way to help keeping me motivated and inspired to write.

Also, please visit my site at  again,

A. Amishi


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